The Hinanger waterfall in the Allgäu
The Hinanger waterfall near Sonthofen is one of the most popular destinations in the Allgäu. This is especially true during summer vacations. Although there are a few parking slots in the immediate vicinity, these are filled relatively quickly. But we anyhow don't just want to walk up and down the mountain, but a bit further.
Our starting point for the easy hike is therefore the Grundbachweg parking in Fischen (Burgstraße 11, 87538 Fischen im Allgäu). You can park there for 4 hours for 2 Euros (as of 2024). More than enough time for the approx. 8 km hike.
The way leads over the bridge and then left along the river Iller. There are signposts to the waterfall early on, another indicator that this is hardly an insider tip.
After a while, we leave the Iller and turn right towards Unterthalhofen. There is a small chapel in the center of the village, which is said to have a beautiful altarpiece. Unfortunately, it is closed. To the left of the chapel is a narrower path that leads us gently upwards.
This path leads us directly to Hinang where we again walk past a chapel in the direction of the country road. After an underpass, we can already see the first cars at the side of the road. Here we turn right towards the waterfalls, which is hard to miss. By this point at the latest, you are probably no longer alone.
After a couple of meters, turn right again from the street into the forest and follow the well-maintained path upwards.
Before you get to the actual waterfall, you pass a few smaller ones. I find these much more interesting to photograph than the big one. This falls 12 meters more or less vertically downwards. However, branches block the view from further away, at least in summer, and the bridge directly in front of the waterfall only allows a few perspectives. On top of this, the bridge is naturally a bottleneck where people tend to congest. It is impossible to set up a tripod there during the day in summer.
The path continues uphill until we reach a meadow at the top of the waterfall. We could turn around here and walk back down the path. However, we decide to follow the signpost there and walk down the small road. This brings us back to Hinang. Instead of going to Unterthalhofen as on the way there, we turn left towards Oberthalhofen. This gives us a nice circular route, because from Oberthalhofen we come directly to the bridge over the Iller where our car is waiting for us.
All in all, it was a lovely hike that wasn't too demanding. As we started reasonably early, the crowds of people were not too bad.
